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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26573005">Flowers for Christmas</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiaya/pseuds/Kiaya'>Kiaya</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Old Guard (Movie 2020)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Action/Adventure, Angst, Depression, Exile, F/F, F/M, Family Issues, Implied/Referenced Torture, Loyalty, M/M, Post-Movie: The Old Guard (2020), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:13:22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>13,061</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26573005</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiaya/pseuds/Kiaya</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The Old Guard fanfic that takes place after the end of the movie. Booker has started his 100 years exile and it's not going very well. A visit from a long lost immortal starts him on a journey of self-discovery. They never said it would easy to live with himself but he can't be lost forever. Perhaps in time, another immortal can help him find love again.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Andy | Andromache of Scythia &amp; Quynh | Noriko, Booker | Sebastien le Livre/Nile Freeman, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>88</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Flowers for Christmas</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Just wanted to give a warning. There are depictions of violence in this fic so if you are easily triggered, please be aware. Be safe and let me know if you have any questions. Thank you so much!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Booker stopped in front of the gravestones and stared down at the bouquet of flowers.</p><p>It was Christmas Eve and the snow was steadily falling in Paris. His annual visit of his family gravesites was one he never neglected. There had been times when missions had interfered but he always visited as soon as they were done. Now that he was looking at 100 years alone, he doubted any jobs would get in his way.</p><p>So the sight of the flowers at his wife's gravestone took him by surprise. No one should have any attachment to these long dead bodies except for him. The only ones who knew were his immortal family members. The ones he had betrayed in his blind grief and tried to justify by telling himself that it had been for the greater good.</p><p>He picked up the flowers and gently brushed off the snow from the delicate petals. The flowers looked like little sunbursts with deep orange that was tipped with yellow. The smell was strong and intoxicating.</p><p>Booker took out the flask that was ever present in his pocket and drank deeply. If this had been left here by one of his family, then he had no idea what it was supposed to mean. Roughly four months have passed since they parted ways in England and he doubted they would change their minds so soon.</p><p>He stared at the flowers as though it would magically give him an answer. They didn’t provide one but he knew it had to have been left by one of them. Was it Andy? He doubted it because Andy wasn’t really the flower giving type. Joe and Nicky? That seemed more likely.</p><p>But a small traitorous voice inside his head started whispering Nile’s name.</p><p>Then he quickly squashed the thought with brutal efficiency. Nile barely knew him. They had spent a handful of days before he had betrayed them to Merrick. Then afterwards, there hadn’t much opportunity to further the friendship.</p><p>
  <em>She’s a good kid but I’m sure she has better things to do than humor an asshole like me.</em>
</p><p>After tucking the bouquet safely back on to the grave, he stood before his wife and three sons and said a prayer in their names. He took the last of the alcohol in his flask and poured it over the stones in a silent tribute.</p><p>
  <em>I hope you are all well wherever you are. I’m sorry I can’t join you yet. But I will someday.</em>
</p><p>With that last despairing thought, he left to go back to his decrepit apartment. His bottles waited for him as the only source of companionship and at that moment, that was the only thing Booker wanted.</p><p> </p><p>********************</p><p> </p><p>Booker accidently dropped his drink and heard the glass shatter on the ground.</p><p>He swore in French at the mess he had made and then sat on the apartment steps with a weariness he could feel in his bones. It was now 6 months since his separation from the family and Booker was not doing well. Because he had no need for a steady income due to years of accumulating wealth, it had left him free to drink and destroy himself to his heart’s content. He was pretty sure he had died of alcohol poisoning several times when he had woken up in ditches and various alleyways. The sickening jolt that sometimes accompanied coming back to life was a fairly certain signal.</p><p>But Booker didn’t care anymore. What was there to care about after what he had done? If he had tried to numb all his emotions before with drinking, now he was trying to drown himself in it.</p><p>As he reached for his door to unlock it, he noticed that it was already open. Even with his dulled senses, the alarm bells were ringing in his brain and he immediately reached for his gun before entering.</p><p>What greeted him was something he had never dreamed was possible.</p><p>A woman wearing a red coat was standing by the sink and was calmly pouring water into a glass.</p><p>“Booker.”</p><p>He stepped further into his apartment and pointed his gun at her head. She turned to him and smiled. “It’s nice to finally meet you.” Then she took a sip of water from her cup.</p><p>For a moment, he wondered if he was hallucinating. After all, he had been drinking almost non-stop for the last 6 months. Perhaps his brain had pickled enough that he was seeing visions of a woman who should be in an iron coffin and drowning in the ocean.</p><p>Quynh smiled knowingly at Booker’s frozen expression. “It seems from your reaction that you recognize me. Are you surprised?”</p><p>He couldn’t breathe. It was like all the air had been sucked out of his lungs. How could this be happening? For the last 200 years, he had been dreaming of her drowning and had felt her crazed rage at her imprisonment. He didn’t dream of her everyday but often enough that alcohol had been the only solution to dull his senses. Booker was sure that if she had been rescued from her watery prison, he would have dreamt it.</p><p>But could he have? He had spent most of his exile barely conscious and almost never sober. Was it possible that he had missed it because he had simply forgotten? Whatever the answer was, Quynh was here now and looking like a very modern woman.</p><p>Booker didn’t lower his weapon. “How did you get out of the coffin?”</p><p>She laughed and he cringed at the sound. Quynh’s laughter had the tinges of madness that he had dreamed of while she was still at the bottom of the sea.</p><p>“That is a long story and I would rather not go into it at the moment.” She took one last sip of the water and put down the glass. “I would rather talk about you.”</p><p>The palms of his hands had started to sweat and he adjusted the hold on the gun. “What’s there to talk about?”</p><p>“Where are the others? Why are you here alone?”</p><p>Booker laughed bitterly at her question. “What? You didn’t see that from your dreams of me?”</p><p>Quynh looked at her nails like a fastidious cat. “Of course I dreamed of you. And of the new immortal. But it’s hard to retain all of the visions when you are drowning every 6 minutes.”</p><p>He swallowed hard at that information. Even the thought of such a fate made his skin crawl in horror. He had died in many creative ways but the fate that Quynh had suffered for the last 500 years was not one he would wish on his worst enemy.</p><p>“They’re not here. I’ve been exiled.”</p><p>Her perfectly shaped eyebrows arched inquisitively at this admission. “Oh? What did you do?”</p><p>Booker tried to swallow again around the lump in his throat. “It’s a long story.”</p><p>“Well then, I suppose we need to get to know each other better then.”</p><p>Before he could even react, Quynh was on him like a lioness. Andy had spoken of her remarkable speed and it seems she had not been exaggerating. The fact that he was still drunk wasn’t helping because it slowed his response. He managed to fire one shot before she had disarmed him and smashed a fist into his temple. Booker lurched forward and almost immediately blacked out.</p><p>As he lay on the floor, disoriented and wanting to vomit, he heard her voice as though from a distant place.</p><p>“Don’t worry, Booker. We are going to be very good friends.”</p><p>Then she brought her boot down on his face and crushed his skull.</p><p> </p><p>********************</p><p> </p><p>When Booker woke up, everything was black.</p><p>For a moment he panicked but then realized that a blindfold had been tied around his eyes. Not only that but his hands were handcuffed behind him along with chains on his ankles. He was in a sitting position and he could feel vibrations coming from the floor. The other ambient sounds told him that he was in some sort of vehicle but he wasn’t sure what. It was too quiet to be a truck or car. Perhaps a plane?</p><p>“I see you have finally decided to join us, Booker.”</p><p>He swiveled his head to the direction of Quynh’s voice. She was probably sitting about six feet away from him. Close enough to get to him if needed but not so close that he could get the jump on her.</p><p>“Where am I? Where are you taking me?”</p><p>There was silence for a few minutes and Booker wondered if she was going to respond. But she finally spoke and he didn’t like what he was hearing.</p><p>“It’s better that you don’t know where I am taking you. But we will be landing soon.”</p><p>So they were on a plane. Having at least one of his suspicions proven was great but it still left him blind and handcuffed. Booker’s mind raced with what he could do to get out of this predicament.</p><p>Suddenly, gentle fingers started stroking his hair as though soothing an anxious pet. “Don’t worry Booker. There is nothing you can do so you might as well accept what fate throws at you.”</p><p>He recoiled at her touch and tried to move away from her. “Fate can go fuck itself.”</p><p>She laughed again in that unhinged manner and moved away from him. Booker could feel the plane starting to descend and his ears pop from the change in altitude. In just a few moments, he felt the thump of the landing gear as it hit the asphalt.</p><p>Once the plane had come to a full stop, he felt arms come around and lift him up off the floor. He had counted four other breathing patterns in the cabin and surely it was these guards that were moving him along. Booker stumbled slightly but he felt the hard barrel of a gun shoved into his spine to keep him going. He managed to not stumble as he went down the stairs while still blindfolded.</p><p>He was pulled along about ten steps when he heard the sound of a car door being opened. Booker was shoved unceremoniously into the vehicle and heard the other bodies entering as well. Then he felt the car move and assumed it was heading to their final destination.</p><p>“Where are you taking me?” asked Booker.</p><p>He heard Quynh’s voice coming from in front of him. “You will see soon.” Then he felt the sharp tip of a weapon pressed to his chest. “Now I realize this isn’t much of a threat but we don’t enjoy unnecessary pain, correct? There is no way for you to escape so let’s behave.”</p><p>He started going through his options in his head. Booker was pretty sure they were not in France anymore. The temperature when he had left the plane was not the cold dreary February that had been settling over Paris. The air had felt warm and more humid. Now he was being transported further away in a car.</p><p>Booker could try to escape now but if what Quynh had done in his apartment was not a fluke, she was more than capable of stopping him. Not to mention he was at a severe disadvantage with the lack of sight and movement. So he decided to wait and bide his time for a better opportunity.</p><p>After about an hour of travel, the car finally came to a stop. He heard the doors open and rough hands yanked him out of his seat. A shove from behind made his feet move as they led him toward an unknown destination.</p><p>The air felt cool and slightly damp. He suspected it was an underground garage as the car had angled downward as it had made its final turns. He heard the sound of an elevator bell and was pushed inside. He felt even more guns pressing into him at all sides. They weren’t taking any chances with him.</p><p>Booker couldn’t tell how many floors they travelled but it felt as though they were going down.</p><p>
  <em>Great. This is going to make it even harder to break out. </em>
</p><p>One thing that was on his side was that he was no longer drunk. His immortal body made getting drunk in the first place challenging. As soon as the poison hit his system, it was trying to repair it. That is why he always had his flask with him so that he could maintain the inebriation.</p><p>But that was the last thing he needed right now. As he was led deeper into wherever he was, he strained all his senses to try and figure out where he could be. Then he heard the sound of a door opening and the same rough hands shoved him down on to a chair. Booker felt chains being bolted around his ankles, hands, and neck. Once the containment was done, the hands left his body.</p><p>“Leave,” said Quynh.</p><p>Wordlessly, the silent guards left the room and closed the door. Booker heard the sound of locks and deadbolts being set on the other side of the room. The sudden quiet was unnerving.</p><p>Then his blindfold was taken off. He squinted his eyes to adjust to the light and carefully looked around his surroundings. The room was windowless and he was chained to a metal chair that was bolted to the floor. There was a metal toilet and sink in one corner and a plastic mat on the other side. There was no pillow or any blankets that he could use to hurt himself or others. A single light in the ceiling illuminated Quynh as she stood before him. Somehow it made the red of her coat look even more sinister.</p><p>“Welcome to your new home, Booker.”</p><p>He gave her the dirtiest look he could muster. “It looks so cozy. Does it have room service?”</p><p>She pointed up at the camera installed on the ceiling. “I suppose you could call that room service. I have a direct feed into you room and I will know if you try anything foolish.”</p><p>Then she walked closer to Booker and smiled in an unnerving manner. “But you still haven’t answered my question. Why are you exiled from the others?”</p><p>Booker’s mouth turned in a deep frown as he glared at her. “I asked you a question first. How did you get out of that coffin?”</p><p>Quynh hummed and tapped her index finger on her lips. “Well I suppose you are right and you did ask me first. Perhaps I should exercise my manners.”</p><p>Then she launched into how she managed to escape her watery prison. In all the years, she had been trapped, the coffin had been sealed shut no matter how many times she had kicked and punched the lid. She had become a creature of pure anger, fear, and pain. The only events that had differentiated one drowning from another was the occasional dreams she would have of Booker.</p><p>But the bad luck that had sealed her fate had finally run out. There had been a treasure hunting boat in the area where she was trapped. It was funded by a wealthy businessman who considered himself an amateur historian and scholar. Their objective had been to find a missing ship wreck.</p><p>Instead of the wreck, what they had found was the iron maiden that had an immortal sealed within it. Once it had been brought up above water and safely on deck, Quynh’s piercing screams had burst through the area like the screech of a banshee. The sailors were shocked but once they realized someone was alive inside the coffin, they broke the lid to rescue her.</p><p>That was a mistake.</p><p>Quynh had lunged out of her prison and immediately killed the closest sailor. His throat had been ripped out by her nails and his gurgling death froze the crew in their place. Soon, she had made short work of almost everyone on board.</p><p>As she was approaching her last potential victim on the ship’s bridge, he suddenly started speaking to her in Chinese. She stopped and paused to listen. Some of the pronunciation was different but Chinese is an old language and some common points still remained. When he saw that she had partially understood him, he then tried English. Quynh’s face scrunched up in displeasure. Then he had tried Tamil and got a better reaction from her.</p><p>Between these three languages, Mr. Richard Lim, the wealthy owner of the ship had begged her to spare his life. That he would give her everything and anything as long as she didn’t kill him. Luckily for him, the first jolt of disarray and madness that had overtaken her had settled down. She quickly realized the advantages of keeping this man alive.</p><p>So she did. He called the coast guards and made a false report about the ship having issues and that it was rapidly sinking. Then he set off explosives that they used in underwater excavation and watched as the ship sank under the water from the safety of the lifeboat.</p><p>The next six months had been filled with so many new experiences for Quynh. Richard had taken her back to civilization and was willing to fulfill anything she desired. The fear that had propelled him in the beginning started to change into curiosity and then awe. When Quynh explained to him about her immortality and the reason why she had been trapped underwater, he was truly obsessed. His lifelong dream of learning about history and the ancient world was suddenly thrust into his lap. So whatever she desired, he carried out. That had included everything from language lessons to catching her up on everything that she had missed in the last 500 years.</p><p>Of course that also meant tracking down her immortal family. But that had not been easy due to the intervention by a certain Mr. James Copley. After the incident in England, he had started his new mission of scrubbing all evidence of their existence. The only real clues they had were the dreams that Quynh was having of Booker and Nile. But whenever they managed to track down Nile’s possible whereabouts, the trail would turn up cold.</p><p>Their luck changed just this week about Booker’s location. Perhaps it had been due to his drunken carelessness. Or maybe Copley had forgotten and slipped up masking his dwelling. But they managed to get a location on his whereabouts and Quynh had flown immediately to Paris to retrieve him.</p><p>“And now here you are,” said Quynh as she gestured toward the room. “And you are going to help me find the rest of them.”</p><p>Booker had been silent throughout her story. The fact that the treasure hunting ship had managed to find her had been a literal needle in a haystack. Andy, Joe, and Nicky had spent years looking for her but with no success. Once modern technology such as sonar and submarines had come into fray, they had attempted a new effort to find her. But without a location to even begin the search, it had been almost impossible.</p><p>“I already told you, I don’t know where they are.”</p><p>“Ah yes, due to your…exile. Correct?” She walked around him slowly and then came to a stop behind him. She leaned over and whispered in his ear. “So what dastardly deed did you do?”</p><p>Booker contemplated whether he should tell her the truth. If Quynh had met him and had appeared at least marginally stable, he would have helped her. He had spent years watching the pain that would etch across Andy’s face whenever her long lost love was mentioned. It would only be right for them all to be reunited.</p><p>But Quynh wasn’t stable. He had known for a long time of the raging fury that was coursing through her whenever he dreamt of her imprisonment. As Joe had so astutely pointed out, spending over 500 years in a box would drive anyone crazy. The thought of this woman at her current mental state tracking down his family seemed like the worst kind of idea.</p><p>The knock at the door interrupted Booker before he could decide on a course of action. Once Quynh acknowledged the signal, the door opened and a guard came in with a trolley covered by a cloth. He left silently after finishing his delivery.</p><p>“From what I saw of your apartment, there wasn’t any indication to show that the others had been there. So I do believe you have been separated for an amount of time. But as for the rest…”</p><p>She took the cloth off the trolley to reveal medical tools and other sinister paraphernalia. “I have no reason to trust anything else you say. So I am going to utilize some assistance.”</p><p>Quynh lifted up a syringe and waved it in the air. “I am constantly astonished at the advancements that humans have made in the last 500 years! I wish we had something like this serum back when I was still roaming about. It would have made some things so much easier.”</p><p>Booker tried to back away from the offending object but he wasn’t going anywhere. She came from behind again and stabbed him with the needle. “You are going to give me all the answers that I want so be a good boy and obey.”</p><p>As the drug started circulating through his system, Booker’s vision started blurring. His last thoughts before everything went totally sideways was that he hoped she asked the wrong questions.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>********************</p><p> </p><p>Unfortunately for Booker, she had asked some very intrusive questions.</p><p>He had no idea how long she had interrogated him but by the conversation they had the next day, she had gotten most of the ugly story out of him. Curiously, the one very important detail he had not divulged was of Andy’s newfound mortality. Perhaps even in his drug addled state, he knew deep down how dangerous that information could be.</p><p>They settled into a routine. Booker would wake up on his plastic mat when he heard the vents open along the ceiling. The gas would come into the room and he knew that he would soon be unconscious again. When he woke up, he would be chained to the chair and at the mercy of Quynh’s questions or whim.</p><p>Another curious aspect of the room had soon been answered for him. There was a drain located directly under the chair. Booker had first assumed it was for his bodily fluid as the various methods of torture could produce a lot. But it served another purpose. One particular day, another vent opened in the ceiling and water started pouring down. There was nothing he could do but watch as it slowly filled the room up to the ceiling. He wasn’t sure how many times he had drowned but by the time the water had left through the aforementioned drain, his lungs and throat were sore in ways he had never experienced before.</p><p>As for Quynh herself, she was a mercurial mixture of childlike wonder and uncontrollable rage. One day she would excitedly tell Booker of how she watched the moon landing then another day she would bind him to the chair and beat him mercilessly.</p><p>But the worst days were when she was falling apart. She would curl up into a fetal position and rock herself as her hair spilled wildly over her eyes. It seemed she was struggling to differentiate whether she was still underwater or not. Those days she would ramble about the men who put her in that coffin and tossed her into the sea. The story would then start mixing with the men who rescued her and it became obvious to Booker that there were times she could not tell them apart. Perhaps that had fed into her murderous rampage once she had gotten above water. One set of sailors on a ship had looked the same to her unstable mind. This was punctuated by periods of glassy eyed stares while the only words she could utter were “Andromache”.</p><p>This continued for about three months before Quynh finally asked him the question that he had been dreading.</p><p>“Why did you betray them?”</p><p>She was currently sitting on the floor and playing with her cellphone. She hadn’t even looked up from the screen when she had asked. The last three hours had been spent watching an endless supply of cat videos punctuated by violence. It seems that even an immortal who had missed the last 500 years of life couldn’t resist the allure of cats falling into bathtubs.</p><p>Booker swallowed and tried to shake the blood that was dripping into his eyes. The wound on his head had already closed but the remnants of the cut was another matter. “I don’t know if I have a good answer to that.”</p><p>Quynh continued to stare at her phone and started swiping across the screen. She had changed from cat videos to a mobile game with bright flashing colors. “What did you hope to accomplish with your betrayal?”</p><p>He was silent for a moment before he answered. “Copley got in contact with me. He told me that he had figured out our secret and that what we had could be a gift to mankind.”</p><p>“But that was just the justification you gave yourself to help soothe the guilt.”</p><p>In the months that they had spent together, Booker had discovered that Quynh didn’t pull her punches, verbal or physical. It surprised him but he had gotten used to being blunt as well. “You’re right. That was the pretty lie. I had also convinced myself that this was what Andy wanted.”</p><p>“But what about Nicolo and Yusuf? Surely they would not have wanted their immortality to end. Did you not consider what they desired?” Then she finally looked up from her phone and pierced him with her gaze. “Unless you had wanted to destroy their love. Was it too blinding for you, Booker?”</p><p>“No, no. That’s not…” Booker closed his eyes and remembered the lab and the hurtful words he had uttered.</p><p>
  <em>What do you know of the weight of all these years alone? You and Nicky always had each other, right? And all we had was our grief.</em>
</p><p>He clenched his jaw at the memory. He hadn’t meant to hurt them. The thought of Joe and Nicky being separated made his stomach turn. Yet, that is exactly what would have eventually happened. Copley had made it sound so simple. Some samples and tests. Working together with scientists to find a cure for all diseases.</p><p>But as they say, the road to hell was paved with good intentions and Booker had underestimated how depraved human desire could be. Of course, just Booker offering his body had not been enough. Of course, Merrick wouldn’t want his golden goose to be freed. But he had been so focused on ending his cursed existence that he hadn’t thought things through.</p><p>Quynh finally put her phone down so she could give him her full attention. “The thing that I find the most puzzling is that you were willing to sacrifice your whole family just to end your petty grief. And over what? Those atrocious mortals who committed abominations against you?”</p><p>For the first time since his imprisonment had started, she saw Booker’s eyes flash with true anger. His voice ground out the words one by one. “Do not speak of what you do not know.”</p><p>“Oh, I do admit I didn’t see everything…but I saw enough.” She got up from the floor and starting pacing around his chair. “I saw what happened to your wife. And I also saw what your sons did to you. Quite tragic that Étienne’s chosen profession was a butcher hmm?”</p><p>She stopped and then leaned close to Booker’s face. “Or perhaps fortunate? I am sure he knew very well what he was doing.”</p><p>Before she could react, Booker lunged forward and clamped his teeth around her throat. Then he bite down and tore it out.</p><p>Shocked, and unable to speak, Quynh started gurgling on her own blood as her eyes bore into his. She stumbled backwards and then fell dead at his feet. Booker spit out the chunk of flesh out of his mouth and waited.</p><p>It didn’t take long before her body started to twitch. He watched as the flesh on her neck started to close up and heal into smooth skin again. Once it was done, she got up in a flash and was on him like an enraged tiger. Quynh grabbed his neck with both hands and squeezed until the life fled from Booker’s body.</p><p>When he came to, they were both covered in blood and panting with exertion. She looked absolutely feral in her rage. “You are a fool, Booker. No matter how much you loved them, it doesn’t change the fact that they cursed you until the end! But Andromache? And Yusuf and Nicolo? You were one of them in the truest sense and you betrayed them because you were too weak!”</p><p>She punched him in the face while she screamed out her anger.</p><p>“Weak!”</p><p>A blow to his chest.</p><p>“Weak!”</p><p>Another blow to his face.</p><p>“WEAK!”</p><p>A final hit to the stomach that made Booker’s body jerk forward in pain. Quynh panted as she stared down at the man who was straining against his chains with his head bowed down.</p><p>A low moan escaped from Booker’s lips as he processed her words. She knew. Quynh had seen the events that tortured him day and night. Why his soul felt as though it was getting flayed alive. The shameful things that he had not even told his immortal family and made him curse his existence.</p><p>With his head still bent down, he groaned. “What do you want from me, Quynh? Why are you doing this?” He finally raised his head to reveal red and tear filled eyes. “Don’t you want to see Andy again?”</p><p>Quynh’s breathing had started to calm down. When it was even again, she answered. “Of course I wish to see Andromache again. But not yet. Not while you still have not understood the true scope of your crimes.” She started smearing the blood away from her neck. “If I don’t punish you correctly, how will I know you won’t betray again?”</p><p>Booker stared at the fellow immortal as her words sunk into his brain.</p><p>
  <em>How will I know you won’t betray again?</em>
</p><p>Suddenly, Booker was reminded of the circumstances of Andy and Quynh’s capture during the witch trials. They knew that the women were being falsely accused and had been smuggling them out of villages. But it had all gone horribly wrong when one of the girls they were helping had betrayed them. She had seen Andy heal from a wound and had been convinced that they were the true witches. While pretending to accept their help, she had called the church’s men in the cover of the night.</p><p>So when Quynh learned of Booker’s betrayal and their imprisonment, of course she would fear his actions. The last time she had been backstabbed, Quynh had ended up in the ocean for 500 years. Even worse, Booker was also immortal. Unlike the foolish girl who had given up her saviors to evil men, he couldn’t die. That meant he could potentially hurt them over and over again.</p><p>Booker started re-evaluating all of her actions in the last three months. If she had wanted to be found, all she had to do was stand by a large well known monument for Nile to dream of her. The Eiffel Tower. The Statue of Liberty. Anything that could be easily identified. Copley could book them a flight and they could be with her in hours.</p><p>But instead she had spent the last three months talking to him. Hurting him. Breaking him down to his most vulnerable state.  </p><p>She wasn’t doing this for pleasure. She was doing it to protect herself and the rest of the immortals from a perceived threat. Quynh didn’t have 200 years of experience with Booker and had no reason to believe him at face value. All this time, Booker had just chalked up her actions to her insanity but he now realized there was a clear intent behind it. The need to win her trust suddenly became absolutely paramount.</p><p>“Quynh.” His voice quivered but he tried to convey his sincerity. “I know I made a mistake. But I will not repeat it. I promise you that I won’t betray you and the others. So please, let’s get you home. You belong with everyone so they can help you heal. You deserve that.”</p><p>Her body shook ever so slightly. The bloody hands that had just been around Booker’s throat were clenched so tight that he could see the white around the edges. Slowly, she approached him and wrapped her arms around his head. Ever so gently, she pulled him against her in a light embrace.</p><p>“Quynh?”</p><p>Then she firmly gripped his head and snapped his neck.</p><p>When he came back to consciousness, she was sitting on the floor with her back turned to him. He could tell that she had her knees up and her arms were hugging them as though they were her last lifeline.</p><p>For the first time since his meeting with her, Booker realized just how small she was. Her personality was so magnetic that it was easy to forget how physically demure she was shaped. It didn’t take away from her fierceness but at that moment, she almost seemed like a lost child.</p><p>But that small body had withstood over 500 years of endless torture. To deny that would be doing a disservice to her fortitude and Booker dismissed any feelings of pity for her. If anything, it enhanced his shame that he had withstood less and had failed to overcome it.</p><p>And knowing that Quynh was the only person on Earth who knew his true past made it easier for him to say the next words.</p><p>“When…when Andy told me that my exile would be for 100 years, I despaired. But not because of the amount of time. I would have been lonely but…I knew there would be an end to my sentence. So that should have given me some hope.”</p><p>Her head raised a little as though to acknowledge that she was listening. Booker swallowed hard to clear the lump that was threatening to choke him.</p><p>“The reason why I despair…the reason why I keep drinking is because…I fear that it’s already too late. That no matter how much time passes, I have already tainted and destroyed their love for me.” He could feel the wet tears as they trailed along his bloody cheeks. “Just like my family tainted my love for them forever.”</p><p>The silence that followed his confession was oppressive and heavy. Booker wasn’t sure if Quynh had even heard him. But then she turned around and sat facing him.</p><p>“Did you ever tell them about what your family did to you?”</p><p>Booker shook his head. “No. By the time that I was found, I was already back with my family. They tried to warn me but I didn’t listen. I was just so happy to be alive and reunited with my wife and children.” He closed his eyes as he recalled Andy’s words. “After the last of my sons died, I was too ashamed to tell them what happened. They had rightfully advised me against my actions and I had dismissed them. I felt like I didn’t have the right to complain.”</p><p>She made a noise of pure frustration. “This is why I keep saying that you are a fool, Booker.” Quynh got up from the floor and walked closer. “Do you know how long it took Andromache to find me? 100 years. A century of wandering this wretched planet while not even sure if I was real! Do you think someone who did that would be incapable of comforting you?”</p><p>Her words cut through Booker to the deep. But she wasn’t done.</p><p>“And Nicolo? He was taught to hate Yusuf’s people and committed murder against them. But he learned to see past all the doctrine and found the love of his life with his enemy. Did you think a man with such a past would not be able to sympathize with your pain?”</p><p>She was pacing back and forth now in animated agitation. “And Yusuf! He would much rather hold a pencil than a sword but that didn’t stop him from taking up arms to protect his city and his family. Even though Nicolo had come to destroy his world, Yusuf still saw the goodness in his heart and loved him in return. You think that generous man would not offer you his shoulder to lean on?”</p><p>Quynh gripped his shoulders and shook him with all her anger. “You were never alone! But your pride and fear didn’t let you see it! And you almost gave them up for an improbable chance so that you could end it all!”</p><p>She shook him again until his brain felt like it was rattling in his skull. “Even this 100 years exile is a sham! Why do you think it took me 6 months to track you down? It’s because they were still protecting you from the shadows! And they are looking for you right now! I can see it in my dreams that Nile and the others are searching! Did you really think they would abandon you?”</p><p>At her words, Booker’s memory flashed back to the shores of the Thames.</p><p>
  <em>I won’t see you again.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Have a little faith, Book.</em>
</p><p>That was the last straw. Any emotion that Booker had locked away came flooding out in tortured sobs as his body shook with pain. She was right. He knew that every cutting words she had made were the truth. The pain that his mortal family had inflicted upon him had made him into a coward who had been unable to fully test his new family’s love. So he had continued to fall further into despair and build apathy for this world. It had made him resentful that Nicky and Joe could still see the beauty and be fueled to do some good. It had made him delude himself into thinking that Andy wanted the same end as him.</p><p>Booker gritted his teeth as his tears kept coming. He felt like his whole body was on fire and the waves of pain would never diminish. He felt such a crippling weight of regret that he thought it would surely crush him.</p><p>She watched him as his body went through the throes of misery. But then she whispered something so softly that he thought he had dreamed it.</p><p>“But I have no right to scorn your cowardice…because I am also scared.”</p><p>Slowly, he looked up and saw how close Quynh was standing in front of him. He could hear her heavy breathing as her lungs worked hard to suck in oxygen. When he looked at her face, it was open and vulnerable in a way he had never seen before. Even the shades of madness he would see in her eyes were dimmed.</p><p>“Sometimes…sometimes I can’t remember who I am,” said Quynh. “I get confused and everything feels so overwhelming. The sounds…the smells…everything feels like too much.” She hugged herself even though it wasn’t cold. “And sometimes I can feel this anger and rage that I can’t control…and...I get scared of what I might do. Like those sailors. They saved me and they were innocent but I couldn’t tell and I murdered them…all of them…”</p><p>She looked into his eyes with a desperation that started to look unhinged. “I know that Andromache looked for me. I believed you when you told me that. And Richard showed me how vast the oceans are with satellite images. He taught me how difficult it would have been for her to find me even with modern technology. So I know I shouldn’t be angry.”</p><p>Her whole body started to shake and she gripped herself even tighter. “I know this but…I still can’t stop feeling so much anger. Why? Why did this happen to me?”</p><p>Then she lunged forward and grabbed Booker’s shirt. Her voice was quivering wildly. “She promised me, Booker! She promised that we would always be together! So why did she break her promise to me?”</p><p>She screamed and wailed as all of her pain rocked her small frame relentlessly. All Booker could do was sit there as waves of her misery crashed against him like the tide on rocks. He was reminded of his dreams of her suffering in the crushing depths of the sea. She kept crying as she collapsed and clutched at his knees as though he was the only thing that kept her afloat.</p><p>“Quynh,” said Booker. “For the same reasons you told me I should have told them the truth, you know they will welcome you back. You need to stop this. Please Quynh. Let them find you.”</p><p>Her face was obscured by the fall of her hair. She was leaning against him and limp from the exertion of her grief. When she finally spoke, her voice was so small he had to strain to hear her.</p><p>“What if she doesn’t want me anymore? I’m…not the same. What if she stops loving me?”</p><p>Booker shook his head fiercely. “No, Quynh. She will never stop loving you. I stopped talking about my dreams because whenever I did, Andy looked like the sky was falling down.”</p><p>She looked up at him in shock. “You didn’t talk about your dreams with them?”</p><p>“Yeah. I just tried to drink it all away.”</p><p>Quynh shook her head in disbelief. “Have I told you lately how stupid you are?”</p><p>For the first time in three months, Booker laughed for real. “Yes, you have.”</p><p> </p><p>********************</p><p> </p><p>Things changed after that conversation.</p><p>Perhaps it had been the dual confessions of their deepest fears. Or that they were both tired of this macabre dance they had been enduring for the last three months. Whatever it was, the brutal showcase of their pain had been a catalyst.</p><p>For one thing, she stopped torturing him. She still used the sleeping gas to facilitate either binding or unbinding him to the chair but the drowning and the physical violence was stopped.</p><p>They also started trading stories about their immortal family. Booker would talk about all the various conflicts and rescues they had been part of for the last 200 years while she spoke of their adventures before her imprisonment. Some of her stories were completely new to Booker. He suspected that Andy had not spoken of them because they had heavily featured both Lykon and Quynh. Being reminded of the people she had lost had probably made her selective in her storytelling.</p><p>But it didn’t seem to deter Quynh. If anything, she seemed thrilled to be able to talk about it to someone who could understand. She told of long horse rides through deserts and battling ancient armies that were the stuff of epic poetry. The music, food, and smells of cultures already long gone filled the air as she talked for hours on end.</p><p>She would also share with Booker all of her various misfires with technology and modernity. She would quiz him on things like the first time he drove a car or why did the microwave explode when she put metal in it. It seems Richard Lim had provided Quynh with a fully stocked lodging but her interactions had been hit or miss.</p><p>Booker had genuinely laughed out loud when she told him the first time she had seen a television. It had alarmed her so much that she had kicked it and crushed it into smithereens. She had been convinced it was a magic box that had trapped people inside that needed to be saved.</p><p>Her continual dependence on her phone was unchanging. It amused Booker to no end that she was just as addicted to that small device like millions of others around the world. YouTube was probably where she spent the most time. Unfortunately, that meant that he had to endure many hours of cat videos. He had once begged her to change to dog videos for some variety but that had only lasted a week.</p><p>The newest obsession for her had been learning how to cook using modern appliances. The accident with the microwave had scared her at first but she had been determined to overcome that mishap. Booker had suggested just using the stove and oven before trying all the fancy new gadgets. When she mentioned wanting an Instant Pot, Booker immediately shook his head and cautioned her against trying to cook with pressurized steam.</p><p>Days like these where it was filled with normal conversation were still disorienting for Booker. Her violent episodes had stopped but she still had days where she was falling apart. In the past he had just stayed silent until her ranting and spasms would end. But now, he tried talking her through it and hoped that his voice was the lodestone to which she could find her way back to sanity. There was days that it worked and others when it was not as successful. He was beginning to wonder if both Richard Lim and he were suffering from some sort of Stockholm syndrome.</p><p>So far through his imprisonment, Booker had not been starved. But the fare had been fairly bland and generic. Ever since she had decided to try a hand at cooking, he had become her guinea pig. He didn’t want to tell her but some of her efforts had been somewhat lacking. When she had demanded an honest opinion, she had looked miffed and made a comment that there was no way she could compare to Nicolo’s cooking.</p><p>But that didn’t stop her and this particular day she had brought some sort of unknown rice dish. He opened his mouth as she spoon fed him and also ate some herself. Previously, when he had suggested she untie him so he can feed himself, she had looked at him like he was an idiot. They had made some progress but there was still a ways to go.</p><p>“Hmm. This is good. What is this?” asked Booker as he chewed.</p><p>“It’s a type of fried rice.” She scooped up more of the fragrant dish and placed it into Booker’s waiting mouth.</p><p>He chewed carefully as he processed that information. “Fried rice? I’ve had a lot of fried rice before and this tastes pretty different.”</p><p>“It’s a local dish. Richard ordered some up for me the other week and I wanted to try making it. What do you think?”</p><p>Booker kept chewing while trying not to let his heartbeat get too wild. A local dish? So something that was only found in wherever this place was? He composed his face into innocent curiosity. “It’s really good. I don’t think I have had this combination of spices and flavors before. What’s in it?”</p><p>She excitedly started to list the various ingredients and how to make it. Quynh had been so caught up in her success at recreating this dish that she was oblivious to how Booker smoothly extracted the information he needed. He felt a bit guilty at his trickery but he didn’t want to be stuck in this jail forever.</p><p>After they had finished the food, she got distracted by her phone again. As she ignored him to watch something about Machu Pichu, he started cataloging the information he knew already.</p><p>Quynh had told him very little of her current situation and what she had told, had not been very enlightening. But the few morsels of information Booker had been carefully gathering was starting to take shape.</p><p>One main clue had been the languages that Richard Lim had spoken to save his neck when Quynh had be freed. The combination of Chinese, English, and Tamil wasn’t something that was found just anywhere. That combined with his last name, made Booker suspect that he was from Singapore or close by. That would fit the region as well since when his plane had landed, the temperature had been warm and humid.</p><p>Now this final clue of the local dish. Booker was not a foodie like Nicky was but he hadn’t lived with a food snob for 200 years and not pick up something. Booker knew regional dishes can vary widely by the location within the country. He remembered one particular trip to Japan where Nicky had made him visit every notable ramen restaurant from Hokkaido all the way to Okinawa.</p><p>So he had carefully quizzed her on the various spices and ingredients in her dish. If there was anyone who could parcel out a location through a recipe, it would be Nicky.</p><p>
  <em>Come on, Nile. I pray to God that you were dreaming and watching us talk about fried rice.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>********************</p><p> </p><p>The answer to his prayer came about two weeks later.</p><p>Booker was once again chained to the chair while she asked him about how they had smuggled refugees out of Germany during WW2. As he started telling her about secret identities and mortal allies, her phone rang and interrupted the story. She reached for it and swiped the screen to pick up the call.</p><p>“Yes?”</p><p>Then her face froze in shock as the person on the other line frantically informed her of an emergency. She hung up and turned to Booker.</p><p>“They are here.”</p><p>He looked at her in confusion. “What?”</p><p>“Andromache and the rest. They are here.”</p><p>Before he could say anything else, she dashed out the door and left him still chained to the chair. He watched the door close automatically and heard the locks click into place.</p><p>With a sudden surge of strength, he pulled at his bindings and tried to break them. But everything held in place. His heart was beating frantically at the thought of his family here to rescue him. He didn’t know what else he could do but wait and it was driving him insane.</p><p>Then he heard some distant noises outside the door. It was muffled but he was sure he heard something. Then without warning, the door opened and Nile was standing there. She was holding a pistol and dried blood was smeared across her cheek.</p><p>“Nile!” Booker didn’t know he could feel so glad and scared at the same time.</p><p>She looked at him and accessed the situation. “This is some crazy shit you’ve gotten yourself into, Booker.” Nile entered the room and started shooting the metal chains off the chair.</p><p>Before Booker could reply, he saw motion near the door. “Behind you!”</p><p>Without waiting, she turned and shot the new guard that had shown up. “This is becoming a pattern that I don’t want to repeat.”</p><p>Once all of his chains had been broken, he got up and grabbed her in a tight embrace. She felt her breath expel out from the force of his arms and laughed. “I’m guessing this means you missed me.”</p><p>He let her go and looked at her smiling face. “You have no idea.”</p><p>“Well we better go because I don’t know how long they can hold the guards off.”</p><p>Booker grabbed her arm to stop her. “Did you find Quynh?”</p><p>She looked at him and shook her head. “No. I was supposed to find you while the others drew the security away from your cell.”</p><p>“We have to find her, Nile. She needs our help.”</p><p>Nile was taking out her extra pistol and handing it to Booker. “I know we have to find her. I saw what she was doing to you. It took so long to find you because there weren’t many clues in my dreams of your whereabouts.” She started loading a new cartridge into her gun and checking to see it was not jammed. “Then I dreamed about you guys talking about fried rice and Nicky started interrogating me about the ingredients-“</p><p>Booker started laughing before she could finish her sentence. His faith in Nicky’s culinary obsession had not been misplaced.</p><p>Nile tipped her head slightly to the right before placing her hand along the side of her head. The earbud in her right ear had Joe updating her on their current situation.</p><p>“Come on, Booker. They found her in the penthouse. We gotta go.”</p><p>They both moved in unison toward the elevator. She took point as he swiveled his gun back down the hallway to make sure they weren’t about to get ambushed. Once the elevator door opened, they entered quickly and punched in the button for the top floor. As they ascended, Booker looked at Nile and nervously gripped his gun.</p><p>“I wasn’t sure if you would come get me.”</p><p>She rolled her eyes and slapped his shoulder in agitation. “This is why you’re not the brains of this outfit. Of course we would come for you.”</p><p>In the 10 months since their separation, Booker had not forgotten how funny Nile was. He didn’t realize until that moment how intensely he had missed her. Then a frightening thought came to him.</p><p>“Is Andy here?”</p><p>“Yeah,” muttered Nile. “Because she wouldn’t listen to any of us and stay back at the safe house. She wanted to see Quynh no matter what.”</p><p>Booker panicked at the thought of their first meeting. “This is bad. Very bad.”</p><p>“Well no shit! She was torturing you Booker! Who knows what kind of crazy-“</p><p>“No, I mean, Quynh doesn’t know that Andy is mortal!”</p><p>Nile stopped her rant immediately. “Oh shit.”</p><p>The elevator door opened with a ding and they both rushed out to reach Andy. They ran down the hallway toward the penthouse entrance and saw a trail of dead guards. It seems Andy, Joe, and Nicky had made short work of the security force. Once they reached the door, they flung it open and saw something that could be straight out of a Greek tragedy.</p><p>Andy was standing still with her hands up. Her gun was on the ground beside her feet. Quynh on the other hand, definitely had a gun and it was targeting Andy’s head. Joe and Nicky were both standing to the side with their pistols aimed at Quynh. Booker saw a man who was cowering by the large luxurious couch that was most probably Richard Lim.</p><p>“Glad you could join us, Booker. I wasn’t expecting this surprise today but I see Nile has already rescued you.”</p><p>Quynh’s voice sounded calm for the moment but Booker wasn’t fooled. He put up his hands and slowly approached the two women and placed himself in front of Andy.</p><p>“Quynh…don’t do this,” he said with a pleading note in his voice. “I know how much you wanted to see Andy again.”</p><p>Her hand on the gun shook but she held firm. “And I also remember mentioning my need to know why she broke her promise to me.”</p><p>Andy touched Booker lightly on his shoulder and stepped out from behind him. “I have no excuses. We tried for years to find you but we failed.” Her voice was full of pain and longing. “I’m so sorry, Quynh. I’m so sorry that you suffered. I wish it had been me in that coffin instead of you.”</p><p>She wept openly as the love that she had given up of ever finding was alive and standing before her. In all the thousands of years that Andy had lived through, she had never felt so much joy and pain at the same time. Tears were also trailing down Quynh’s face but she still held on to her gun.</p><p>Booker pushed Andy behind him again. “Quynh, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you this but Andy is mortal now. If you shoot her with that, she won’t come back.”</p><p>Quynh jolted in shock at Booker’s words. She stared at him like he was the most wretched liar on earth. “No…I don’t believe you.”</p><p>“Why would I lie? Didn’t Lykon also stop being immortal? You know this can happen to us.” He stopped Andy from trying to get past him. “Please Quynh, please put the gun down.”</p><p>She wasn’t listening to him anymore. Her whole body was shaking like a leaf in the wind. Her eyes were wild as she stared at Andy in shock and pain. “Mortal? But…but…I’m finally free…why would she lose…I don’t understand…”</p><p>“Please, Quynh,” pleaded Andy. “Please come back to me. I beg you.” She tried to go to past him again and Booker stopped her. There was no one in the room who knew how unstable Quynh could be. He wasn’t going to take any chances with Andy’s life.</p><p>“You told me I was a fool for all the years I wasted and you’re right. Unfortunately, Andy doesn’t have forever anymore.” He slowly approached Quynh. “Don’t make the same mistake as me and waste the years you could have with her.”</p><p>Quynh was shaking so badly that Booker was surprised she could still hold on to the gun. Moving as smoothly as he could, he reached for the pistol and slowly unwrapped her cold fingers around the trigger. Then he took the weapon away and stepped aside.</p><p>Before she could even say a word, Andy rushed up and crushed Quynh in her arms. Both women collapsed on to the floor and a broken wail of sorrow emanated from between their shaking bodies. Booker moved away to give them space.</p><p>He felt his eyes sting with tears as he watched Andy and Quynh hold each other. He couldn’t even fathom the amount of pain and relief they must have been feeling. The last time they had seen each other was over 500 years ago and that was a span of time he still couldn’t fully formulate.</p><p>“Booker.”</p><p>A hand touched his shoulder and Booker turned to see Nicky as hot tears were welling from his beautiful green eyes. Joe was crying too. Nicky hugged Booker first and he barely had a chance to unstiffen his body before Joe was hugging him as well. Then a low sob of relief came out from Booker’s lips.</p><p>He stood there feeling the warmth and closeness of his two brothers in arms. It had been less than a year since they had last seen each other but it had felt like an eternity. Booker couldn’t believe that after all that had happened, they would now be holding him up as his body sagged weakly.</p><p>“So…I’m loving this group love fest but don’t I get a piece too?” said Nile. Despite the words, her tone was full of warmth and humor.</p><p>Andy choked out a wet laugh and then turned toward Quynh. “My love, this is Nile. She’s our newest baby.”</p><p>“Who are you calling a baby, Andy?” demanded Nile.</p><p>Quynh looked at Andy and smiled. “She seems a bit big to be a baby, my heart.”</p><p>They slowly got up from the floor and stood facing each other. Andy lifted her hand and slowly traced the outline of Quynh’s face. “Is this real?” she asked.</p><p>“Although there are days when I can’t tell, I certainly hope this is,” replied Quynh. Her face was filled with so much joy but also uncertainty. Her eyes still radiated a bit of the madness that could overtake her at any moment. “Andromache. I fear that I have done things that you will not be happy to hear. But would you please listen anyways?”</p><p>Andy leaned her forehead against Quynh’s and breathed deeply. “Always.” Then she softly kissed Quynh for the first time in centuries and it was just as sweet as she had remembered.</p><p>After a moment, they separated but did not let go of each other. Quynh turned toward the bewildered man still standing in the room. “Richard. Thank you for saving me from my imprisonment. I can never repay you for all the kindness you gave me.” She looked at Andy again and smiled. “But I have my family back so I am leaving.”</p><p>His face shattered at these words. He lurched upright and stumbled forward. “What do you mean? But…” He was fumbling over his words. “But I saved you. I gave you everything that you asked for. I spent a fortune building that room for your prisoner. All the bribes and funds to track down your comrades. How can you leave me after everything I did for you?”</p><p>Quynh looked at him with pity. “I am sorry, Richard. But this is what I want. I wish to be with Andromache and my family. I know that-” She looked at Booker and her calm slipped a bit. “I know I asked you to do unreasonable things. But it stops now.”</p><p>“No, no. I won’t accept this.” He shook his head in disbelief. “You’re mine, Quynh. You are the treasure I found on the bottom of the ocean. I won’t let you go!”</p><p>He reached into his jacket and revealed a gun from a concealed holster. Quynh gasped and tried to cover Andy as he aimed his gun at them.</p><p>But before he could shoot, three bullets entered his body. Two to the heart and one between the eyes. Booker looked at Joe, Nicky, and Nile and was impressed how quickly they had reacted.</p><p>Quynh gasped in surprise. She slowly approached the dead body and touched his shoulder with a shaking hand. This was not the end that she had imagined for him. But he had tried to hurt her Andromache and the others had reacted accordingly. She decided that she would mourn him in her own way.</p><p>“Come on. We need to get out of here before more security shows up,” ordered Andy. She took Quynh’s hand. “Let’s go.”</p><p>They all moved as a group and exited the penthouse. Copley was backing them up and had already hacked into the security system even before their entry. He was busy erasing all digital footprints of their actions along with creating a scenario to cover up all the deaths. They took the elevator to the underground garage and got into a large unmarked van to drive away from the building.</p><p>Thankfully it was Joe that was driving and not Andy. Booker knew that Andy had control issues with a car but she was currently too busy sitting in the back seat with Quynh wrapped around her torso. He was sitting beside Nile as Nicky had chosen to take the passenger seat. He looked at her as she stared ahead at the road.</p><p>“So how many times did you have to describe that fried rice to Nicky?”</p><p>Nile suddenly choked as she tried to hold back the laughter coming out of her. “More than I care to remember. If I have to eat anymore nasi goreng, I am going to put Jakarta on my blacklist of future visits.”</p><p> </p><p>********************</p><p> </p><p>They drove for about 30 minutes before reaching their destination.</p><p>Sunda Kelapa Port was not busy at this time of night. They had purposely started their raid to retrieve Booker and Quynh in the dark to help with the cover up. They had already rented a boat ahead of time and it was waiting for them.</p><p>One thing that they had not taken into account was Quynh’s reluctance to board the ship. It took Andy another 20 minutes of talking and convincing before she could help the shaking immortal on board. She immediately took her to the control room and closed the door. Joe and Nicky started unmooring the boat while Nile and Booker went to ditch the van.</p><p>It was funny. Even though they barely spoke and had not been together for almost a year, everyone fell into familiar patterns and knew just what to do. Booker was still feeling raw and weak from the previous events and was glad that Nile was behaving without any reproach.</p><p>Once the boat was ready, they all got on and moved out of the harbor. One of the many reasons that Indonesia made for a great hideaway were the thousands of island that dotted around the mainland. Some of them were totally uninhabited and it was to one of these that Andy steered the boat. They had established a safe house here about 15 years ago and it was still in surprisingly good shape.</p><p>The boat was safely secured to the dock and they made their way away from the beach. There was a medium sized cabin that was tucked away in the trees that had a generator and was fully stocked with supplies.</p><p>When Booker entered the lodging, it was obvious that they had been here for at least a week. Most likely after they had pinpointed his location, they had come here to set up and get ready for the assault. He saw the laptops and clothes scattered around the table. Whatever that Nicky had cooked last still lingered in the air.</p><p>“Booker.”</p><p>He turned to see Joe standing before him. A stack of clothes and towels were in his hands. “You probably want to get cleaned up first. We can wait.”</p><p>Booker stood there and tried to meet Joe’s eyes. The last time they had seen each other, Joe had been climbing the steps and away from him. Their last nod to each other had been the only acknowledgement of their separation. But now he was here about 99 years too early.</p><p>He took the offering and thanked Joe. Then Joe made his way back to the kitchen to help Nicky with the dinner preparation.</p><p>It wasn’t difficult to find the bathroom. The spray was pitiful but he was so happy to be getting properly clean. He tried to make it short but he had underestimated how filthy he had gotten during his capture. When he exited the bathroom, he ran into Nile in the hallway.</p><p>“Hey, I just wanted to tell you that Quynh is holed up in the main room with the others. I think we should give them some space.” She was holding a plate that was full of delicious smelling food. “Let’s eat outside so we don’t disturb them.”</p><p>He gratefully took the food and followed her outside. There was a picnic table set up in the rear area of the cabin. Strings of light were hung through the trees and gave off a soft glow. They sat and started eating the food that Nicky had prepared ahead of time. It was spaghetti carbonara which happened to be one of Booker’s favorite food. He wondered how Nicky managed to make this in the middle of nowhere and if this had been intentional.</p><p>“I’m sorry, Booker.”</p><p>He looked up in surprise at Nile’s words. “What would you be sorry about?”</p><p>She looked at him with sadness and regret. “I only had that one dream of her drowning and I had no idea what she looked like. When I started having dreams of a woman, I just assumed it was the usual dreams that your brain conjures up.” She stabbed her fork into the pasta and twirled it. “I didn’t realize what was going on until she already had you.”</p><p>Booker shook his head in denial. “No, Nile. There is nothing for you to be sorry about. No one could have seen this coming.”</p><p>He took a bite of his food as he carefully considered his words. It was important to him to make sure he got his intentions across clearly.</p><p>“I know you probably saw a lot of unpleasant things these past few months. But I hope you will give Quynh a chance. She’s been through something we can never fully comprehend and she needs help.”</p><p>She didn’t say anything so he continued.</p><p>“And I know this sounds fucked up but Quynh helped me come to terms with some things. It also probably helped that she wouldn’t let me drink any alcohol.” He chuckled in a dark manner. “It was like my version of a detox spa getaway.”</p><p>Nile stabbed her fork in his direction. “That is one messed up way to detox. Aren’t you supposed to do yoga and eat only vegetables?”</p><p>“That sounds unpleasant. I think I would prefer what I just went through than yoga.”</p><p>She laughed as she shook her head in disbelief. It was something small but making her laugh made Booker’s heart feel warm again. He picked at the pasta with his fork.</p><p>“Do you remember what Andy said to me at Merrick’s lab?” asked Booker.</p><p>“She said a lot of things at the lab.”</p><p>He nodded in agreement. “True. But specifically Andy pointed out that she and I had been doing a shitty job of living our life. And she was right. After my family died, I don’t think I was really living anymore. Just existing.” He looked at Nile with a grim smile. “That doesn’t exactly help in making good choices.”</p><p>She sighed. “Booker, I’m not going to tell you that you made a good choice because you didn’t. You fucked up. But even a newbie like me could see how much pain you were in when I first met you.” Nile kept playing with the food on her plate. “You were the most honest about the toll that this immortality can take from us. I’m not making excuses for you but as far as I’m concerned, Andy, Joe, and Nicky had a part to play in this whole clusterfuck. A family doesn’t get to a crisis point like this if all cylinders were firing at full capacity.”</p><p>Once again, Booker thought how Nile was the breath of fresh air they needed. The depravity and violence of humankind was always at the forefront of their missions. He had not blamed Andy at all when she had declared that the world should just burn.</p><p>The thing that had changed it all was Nile. Nile who had such clear eyes. Who could cut through the bullshit and never wavered from doing the right thing. Booker could immediately see how different Andy was after their fight at Merrick’s lab. Her smile as she pulled Nile close had a spark that Booker had never seen before. He still remembered Andy’s laughter when Nile just wanted an apology for his transgressions.</p><p>As far as Booker was concerned, Nile was the best of them. She hadn’t just saved their physical bodies when she stormed that building on her own. Nile had saved them all in ways she probably didn’t quite understand yet.</p><p>“I think it’s very generous of you to think that way,” said Booker. “But the truth is, what I did was the most selfish thing possible and I was lucky that they only wanted exile from me.”</p><p>Nile shook her head as though this statement didn’t sit well with her. “I don’t know Booker. I can understand there needing to be a price for a wrong done.” She looked at him with a softness that made him weak. “But just because you messed up doesn’t mean it invalidates your pain.”</p><p>He stared at her while those words played over in his mind. The string of lights made Nile look almost ethereal in their glow. Not for the first time, Booker wondered how different things could have been if he had stopped his plans.</p><p>Booker looked at Nile and made sure she held his gaze. “That’s why I have to leave.”</p><p>She dropped her fork in surprise. “What? No! Why would you leave now? We’re finally all together. All of us. Even Quynh!” Nile got up from the bench and came around to sit next to Booker. “I know this is not how we all thought this was going to pan out. But we are here now and there is a second chance to fix this. Let’s talk to them. Please, Booker.”</p><p>A warmth that he had not felt in years started to settle inside his chest. Once again, he marveled at Nile’s capacity for kindness. It was honestly more than he deserved but he took it nonetheless. He picked up her hands and folded them into his own.</p><p>“Nile, listen to me. I know you didn’t agree with my exile but this is not the same. I am choosing to go.” When she tried to interrupt, he placed a finger on her lips to stop her. “I thought it was a punishment too. But after seeing what happened to Quynh with my own eyes, I know I was being naive. If they had hung or quartered me, I would have deserved every minute of it. But they didn’t do that.”</p><p>Nile’s face looked pained but she didn’t refute him. She knew just as well as him that he had done a great wrong. The fact that he was so remorseful didn’t take away from that fact.</p><p>“I’ve already wasted so much time. I had given up on the world and I don’t want to keep making the same mistakes.”</p><p>She bit her lips in dismay. Nile was reminded of what Andy had told her back at Merrick’s lab.</p><p>
  <em>You reminded me there are people still worth fighting for.</em>
</p><p>She was quiet while she let his words sink in. They were still holding hands when she finally spoke up. “What are you going to do?”</p><p>Booker smiled ruefully. “Gotta rebuild. And you can’t build a house on shaky foundations. Lucky for me, Quynh did a great job at demolition.” Then his face got very serious “Nile, promise me something.”</p><p>“What promise?” asked Nile.</p><p>“Promise me that you will be there for Quynh. She is damaged far beyond anything we can imagine. The rest of us, Andy, Joe, and Nicky, we all have one foot back in the past and all the shit that comes with it.” He untangled his right hand from her grip and cupped her cheek. “But you? You’re different. Quynh is going to need your clear eyes and heart to heal. Especially because Andy is mortal.”</p><p>“But she barely knows me.”</p><p>He laughed at her comment. “Nile, I think you underestimate your capacity for winning people over. You were the first person I ever talked about my son Jean-Pierre and that was after just a few days of knowing you.” Booker pulled Nile into a hug. He turned his head so that his lips brushed against her ear. “Promise me, Nile. Promise me you will protect them.”</p><p>She was silent for a moment before she answered. “I promise.”</p><p>Booker hugged her even tighter as he tried to imprint everything in his mind. Her warmth, her touch, her smell, and the strong beating of her heart against his own. Booker had no idea how long it would be before they could see each other again. So he tried with all his senses to memorize this moment for when the days got too lonely.</p><p>After a few more minutes, he released her. “I don’t want to rush you but do you by any chance have an extra burner phone with Copley’s number on it?”</p><p>“What? Are you leaving now?” she asked incredulously.</p><p>“Better than letting it drag out.” He looked back at the cabin and thought of his family inside. It hurt to leave again so quickly but Booker knew this was for the best. Quynh needed them and he didn’t want to take away the focus from her healing.</p><p>Nile got up and went back into the cabin. About ten minutes later, she came back with a backpack filled with supplies and an extra phone. “Are you sure about this?”</p><p>Booker finished the last of the pasta, silently thanked Nicky for the meal, and took the backpack from her. “Very sure.”</p><p>They made their way to the small dock on the beach and he started undoing the ropes. “I’ll get in contact with Copley and have him send you a new boat.”</p><p>Nile nodded mutely. Her face was full of conflicting emotions that was battling for control. She hated seeing him go after they had just reunited but she also understood his need to rebuild again. And sometimes making a fresh start meant not dragging your baggage with you.</p><p>Booker finished his preparations and turned to Nile. She hugged him again and this time even more fiercely than before. “Stay safe, you idiot. Don’t get kidnapped again.”</p><p>He laughed and she could feel his breath along her cheek. “But if I do, you’ll come rescue me again, won’t you?”</p><p>Nile shoved him playfully. “As long as I don’t have to know the difference between a nasi goreng kampung and Chinese fried rice.”</p><p>They both laughed in unison and it dispelled the tension in the air. She watched him get on the boat and waved as he started the engine. He turned around and waved back. Nile stood there as long as it took for him to become a small speck on the ocean.</p><p>Booker had also watched as the shore got farther and farther away. His chest clenched in pain as he could no longer make out her shape standing on the dock. He had to pull his gaze away and look forward to steer the boat.</p><p>As soon as his course was set correctly, Booker took out the phone and called the only number that was saved in the contact list. After a few rings, someone picked up.</p><p>
  <em>“Nice to talk to you again, Booker.”</em>
</p><p>The Frenchman smiled in pleasant surprise. “How did you know it was me?”</p><p>“<em>I had a feeling that you would be calling soon. What can I do for you?”</em></p><p>Booker thought about everything that had transpired in the last ten months. It seemed surreal that so much had happened but now he felt surer in his footing than he had in decades. He knew what he had to do.</p><p>“I have some unfinished business in Paris. Do you think you can hook me up with a flight plan?”</p><p>
  <em>“Certainly. When you dock, I will have all the arrangements ready for you.”</em>
</p><p>“Thanks.”</p><p>Booker hung up the phone and watched the sun as it slowly started to rise along the horizon.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I usually struggle writing stuff like this so I was literally pulling my hair out. But I wanted to get through all the crappy sad Booker and Quynh parts so hopefully I can get to the slightly happier parts!!! But still some angst ahead so beware.</p><p>I want to thank <a href="https://haveagoodday94.tumblr.com/">Liss</a> and <a href="https://of-genovia.tumblr.com/">Grace</a> for all your input concerning the language and logistics of Singapore. I also want to thank <a href="https://voidofprinciple.tumblr.com/">voidofprinciple</a> for the references on Jakarta. I couldn't have done this without you all!! </p><p>(BTW don't listen to Nile...nasi goreng is freaking delish!)</p><p>And last but not least, thank you<br/><a href="https://scimitar-and-longsword.tumblr.com/">Lolo</a> for the moral support!</p><p>You can find me at <a href="https://kiaya.tumblr.com/">my Tumblr page</a>. Let me know if you have any questions!</p><p>Thanks for reading!</p>
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